Fireworks with a Weasley
by carma52
Summary: I suck at summaries but it's basically just a little romance between an OC and Fred Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters and plot lines belong to J.K Rowlings and Warner Brothers Fred/OC
1. Chapter 1

I ran my hands softly through my hair and grimaced as I did so. It never seemed to turn out quite perfectly in my opinion. A knock on the bedroom door panged through my eardrum and caused me to perk up.

"Daaaaarling!" Carla nearly sang. That lovely old woman was a second-mother to me and had been since she found me on the streets when I was 7. "I hope you're ready to go! Don't want to miss the train, do you? You'll miss your 6th year entirely!" I laughed lightly.

"Well, Carla...I could stay home and knit with my darling mama!" I could hear Carla snicker lightly as she walked away from the door. A few moments later she shouted at me to hurry up. Carla was a Muggle, so she just made sure I Apparated to London on time. Right now, I lived in Rochester, Minnesota. Maaaany miles away! I was allowed to apparate simply because all of the magic I performed...since I never did use a wand...was undetectable by the Ministry.

I rushed my three sisters out the door with their trunks as Carla whisked me off. Because I lived in the country, I made it a habit to apparate in the backyard. My twin, Alex, was taller than me and a little thinner with reddish brown hair and bright emerald eyes. We were obviously fraternal because you looked nothing alike. Our personalities were different, too and your friend groups, too. She was in Ravenclaw and I was a Gryffindor, of course. Amber was in her 5th year, and was in Hufflepuff, she was sweet and quiet, but she hated the Weasley twins because of their pranks, so me and her didn't talk as much. Kima, the youngest, was in Slytherin. Of course, someone was bound to in the family! We were descendants of Slytherin! But...no one wanted to be the one to be in it...except Kima. Kima was in love with Malfoy and he with her. I disapproved highly, but my dear, beloved baby sister was going to do what she wanted, and I had long accepted that. Amber and Alex had not.

Arriving to London was a cinch, and so was board the Hogwarts Express. My four sisters parted, leaving to our own seperate compartments. I walked into one and saw Ron sitting alone.

"Hey, Ron! Where're Fred 'n George?" Before he could answer someone sprang from behind me and tackled me to the ground.

"GOTCHA, Casey!"Fred yelled as he sat on me. George walked in and laughed at the two of us. He sat down on my back next to Fred and ignored my gasps for air.

"Hello, Ickle Pumpkin!" Fred said playing with my curls with teasing in his voice. I held my breath and managed to make them levitate inches off my back...only enough to squirm out from under them. With a subtle hand motion, I let them down gently! Fred sprang up and hugged me.

"You're getting more and more talented, love!" Fred exclaimed.

"You sure are!" George agreed as he brushed himself off. "Any new joke ideas?" He asked, anticipating good news! I cocked an eyebrow as Fred released me.

"What do you think I am?" i said. "Of course!" I opened my pack and pulled out an old notebook with the pages filled with possible products for the twins' future store. The three of us planned and discussed the entire ride to Hogwarts. On the carriage ride to the school, Fred squeezed his way next to me as George found Lee and sat with him.

Fred looked at me with a twinkle in his eye...but not the usual mischievous one. He just looked happy. I chuckled and punched his arm lightly. "What?" I asked, smiling.

"Nothing." Fred said and looked away slyly. He glanced back at me, obviously wanting to say something.

"It's just kind of nice to see you again." His grin broadened and he put a friendly arm around my shoulders and squeezed.

"Oh, yes, just kind of, right?"

"Of course. No more than that...in fact, you're quite the bother." He joked, managing to keep a straight face. "I mean, look how annoyingly you convinced me to put my arm around you." As he finished uttering this, I laughed.

"You did it on your own accord, love." I reminded him.

"That's what it looks like to an innocent bystander...however; you and I both know you used those eyes. You looked at me, and I just couldn't help it. I am warning you, Miss. This behavior is unacceptable." He teased, gently tugging on one of my curls.

"Hmm." I couldn't help but smile at his charm. "There's nothing you can do about it." We both laughed because we both felt the chemistry and denied it. Neither of us knew what the other was thinking. Fred kept his arm on my shoulders and a smile on his face until we both reached the castle.

Sitting at the Gryffindor table awaiting our dinner, Fred, George, Lee and Q waiting impatiently for Dumbledore to speak. However, when he did...we all received a shock.

"I regret to inform you, Hogwarts Students, that there will be no Quidditch this year." Everyone gasped and Fred yelled something out. I was the top Chaser on the Gryffindor team, Fred and George were Beaters and Lee was the announcer for the games. We exchanged angry glances with the rest of the team as we all protested. Dumbledore raised his hands, so the hall silenced slowly.

"I am deeply sorry. However, Hogwarts is hosting The Triwizard Tournament this year!" As he explained what it was, Fred and George started scheming on how they could fool the judges that they were over 17.

"Oh, come on, guys! You don't really want to do that, do you? It's really dangerous..." I gave an incredulous look at the two.

"Like that's ever stopped you!" George scoffed.

"But...this is different! You could die!"

"Casey, love...I can die by looking at that git Flint's face any day that I'm here at Hogwarts! But that doesn't stop me from pranking him!" Fred reasoned.

"Oh, Fred, I'm serious. It wouldn't kill you to try to be a little serious for once. Maybe just once in your life?" The look on Fred's face made me take back your suggestion. "Well, fine. But, this is different, Fred. These tasks are dangerous. Besides, Dumbledore is NOT an idiot. You'll have to try really hard to get past these judges...whoever they are."

"Well...that's where you come in, right?" George questioned.

"I mean...he's right...we do have the talented Mistress of magic on our side..." Fred batted his eyelashes at me in an exaggerated fashion. "The beautiful...smart...talented Mistress of Magic..."

"Oh, shut it!" I laughed.

"He's right, Casey!" George said. "You can do almost anything. Please? Help us?"

"No! I am not going to assist you two in killing yourselves." I looked to Lee. "Lee, are you hearing all this?" Lee scrunched his mouth to the side without giving me eye-contact.

"It IS 10,000 Galleons." With Lee's statement, Fred and George cheered and patted him on the back.

"Thanks, Lee." I muttered sarcastically.

"Well, Casey, my dear, it is three against one." George grinned.

"You know what our motto is, love, don't you?" Fred asked. "One for all and all for one? So, you have to. No matter what!" When I refused to give in, Fred reached to my side and tickled me. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't escape, and eventually he had his arms around my waist and pressed up against him.

"Agree, or I will squeeze the Hell out of you."

"Fine!" I yielded, smiling. "You're such a loser." I said to Fred.

"Au contraire," He smiled. "It looks like I just beat you, kid."

...

That night, I headed up to sleep after some more time with Fred and George. I wasn't really excited for Herbology tomorrow... I hated that class...it's the only class I just couldn't grasp. It was pointless, in my opinion. However, I was always excited to see my friends...especially Fred. It was always nice to see him. Not only was he my best friend, but I had a slight crush on him. I decided to ignore it and just stay friends with him, but with each day with him...I wondered if that was what I really wanted. I pulled back my shiny bob of spirals into a tiny ponytail and changed into a silky slip-dress to sleep in. Just as I was going to settle into bed, a slick black bird tapped on the window. I jumped up and saw that it was no owl...it was a mysterious, midnight hawk. It glared me...and I noticed it had a parchment. The bird grabbed my hand with it's talons as I opened the window. I took the parchment off quickly...because the bird creeped me out,frankly. The hawk flew out the window and I shut it quickly.

"What on Earth is that?" Angelina asked me from her bed as she brushed her hair.

"I'm not sure. A hawk of some sort...but, I've never gotten a letter from one of those." I remarked.

"That's strange." Katie Bell agreed from across the room. I nodded in agreement.

"Well, who's it from?" Angelina asked. I shook my head slowly. When I opened it, it was blank.

"Just from a great aunt..." I lied. "She's from Russia...they must do it that way or something." The rest of the girls shrugged and went on with their nightly routines. I stared at the blank parchment...wondering why on Earth someone would send this to me. I turned it over and still, there was nothing. I set it on my table and tried to forget about it. It would be a long day of first classes tomorrow, so I needed my sleep.

The blank parchment waited for me as it sat upon my bedside table.

I was never much of a fan of getting up early. If it were up to me, you'd wake up at noon every day and your day would extend until 4 in the morning. However, society's clock didn't agree with mine and I was forced to comply. I rose bright and early for my first day of classes and frowned at Angelina, who looked just as peeved to have risen at such a God forsaken hour. She grunted as if to agree with my grimace and trudged out to shower. I followed.


	2. Chapter 2

All went as normal and I pinned a little red barrette in my hair and smiled. I happened to like how I looked this morning. I wore a cheery smile all the way down to the common room, and it widened when I saw that Fred and George were waiting at the foot of the stairs for me. They both smiled in unison, and Fred outstretched his arm. This was something we used to do when we were younger. Fred or George would catch me if I jumped off of something. A lot of time it resulted in injury, but now the twins were so much taller and stronger that we were successful. So, I jumped from the stairs and fell perfectly into Fred's arms.

"Well, look what I found, George." Fred said casually, as he gripped me tightly. I didn't resist because his warmth was comfortable.

"Why is that a Casey?" George feigned disbelief. "How wonderful! You have a lot of luck, Mr. Weasley."

"Oh, thank you, Mr. Weasley. She shall look oh-so-perfect on my shelf, don't you think?" Fred said as he hoisted me into a fireman's carry so I was more supported. I slipped my hands around his neck.

"Oh, of course! All Casey's do. However, I can't help but think this may be a special one!" George answered.

"Guys...not that this isn't flattering...but can we go down to breakfast? I don't want to be late for Transfiguration. I need to show everyone else up like usual." I tried to jump out of Fred's arms while saying this...but only half-heartedly. He did not yield; he only gripped me tighter as I had hoped in the back of my mind.

"Yes, yes, pet, we're headed there! Come, Mr. Weasley." Fred said as the twins proceeded out of the portrait hole...Fred still carrying me.

"She DOES look quite cute today." Fred continued. It almost sounded sincere. I felt a little ashamed that my heart sputtered like a 13 year old.

"Yes, with this bow!" George plucked it out of my hair and put in his fiery locks. "Now, I'M the cute one! Don't you want me now, instead, Mr. Weasley?" George gave an exaggerated sulky pose and batted his eyelashes at his brother. Fred took a look at me and then glanced at George.

"I'm sorry, darling...you're high-quality, but I am so infatuated with that bow." He set me down and immediately flocked to George. Instead of picking him up, he took the bow from George and put it in his own hair.

By the time we made it down to breakfast, I had little time to gulp down breakfast and head to class. My first day of classes was of course uneventful except for regular chats with people you hadn't seen and boring, dreadful lectures from professors. George managed to land himself in detention already, but Fred managed to escape it. He and I sat in an isolated chair in the common room.

"Save my chair, Fred? I need to get a new quill from the dormitory."

"Anything and everything for my love." He winked at me and looked back down to his list of potential gags and jokes. I ran up the stairs to the empty dormitory, eager to get back down to Fred. I rarely got any time alone with him since George was always near him, and I was slowly beginning to accept my crush on Fred. I grabbed a quill from my bedside table and noticed a piece of parchment with a small bit of writing on it. I ignored it and turned to leave...then did a double take.

_Wait, what is this?_ I thought. I picked it up. All it said was, _"Confirm that you, Casey Berry, are the one reading this by marking the parchment." _I looked at it with a confused expression...but then realized...the blank piece of parchment from last night. Bewildered, I ran back down to tell Fred.

"Fred!" I shouted, causing a few frightened third years to stare at me.

"Yes?" He asked without looking up.

"Fred, look at this." I waved the parchment in his face.

"What is it...? It's just a piece of parchment, isn't it?"

"No, of course not!" I shouted. Before I could explain further Fred gasped.

"Why, you're right! It's a piece of cursed parchment! Put it down, dear, or you'll get a terrible case of dragon pox!" He smiled at me. How witty he was.

"Fred! I'm being serious!"

"Ah, to be serious...what a terrible waste of time." He remarked in response. However, I ignored him. I was too busy gaping at the now suddenly blank piece of parchment. The writing I had seen had now disappeared.

"But...I swear...there...there WAS writing." I stuttered. Fred, seeing my concern stood up and gently guided me to the chair next to him.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry; I didn't mean to overwhelm you. What's going on now?"

"There was writing here. Well, when I received it last night...it was blank...just like it is now. But, when I went to get a quill, it had writing on it! It told me to confirm that I was Casey. And now...the writing is gone again." I explained. Fred cocked his head, but I could tell he believed me. That was one thing that I loved about him. He always gave me the benefit of the doubt.

"How were you supposed to confirm it?" He asked.

"Well, I don't know." I answered. "Wait! I was supposed to write something I think. I think it told me to mark the parchment."

"Well then mark it!" Fred exclaimed. "What in Merlin's beard are you waiting for? Do it." I was nervous, though.

"Fred...can you do it?" I gave him a puppy dog stare.

"What if it...knows...?" He narrowed his eyes causing me to chuckle.

"But...I'm scared." I admitted. Seeing that I was serious, Fred reached for it and patted my hand.

"I guess I could." He wrote something upon the paper. The ink he wrote disappeared before our eyes.

"Hmm." Fred looked at the parchment and searched it for any clue that his ink was ever there.

"Casey, I think you need to do it." Fred said softly. "Don't worry, I'm right here. This big bad parchment won't hurt you with me here!" He handed me the parchment and took hold of my right hand, for I'm left handed. I smiled when I realized that he was holding my hand to comfort me. I squeezed his hand and he squeezed back.

"Yes, I'm here. Now do it." Fred assured me. I had no clue why I was so nervous. However, something should be done about this...both me and Fred was curious. So, while squeezing Fred's hand, I wrote: This is Casey Berry.

The ink once again disappeared.

"It's useless!" I exclaimed, but before I could let go of Fred's hand, writing reappeared...but not my writing.

Fred and I stared at the parchment in disbelief. Writing was forming out of thin air onto the parchment...without a quill or a person to hold it.

"Casey...you're not doing this to pull one over on me, are you?" Fred questioned. I merely shook my head. I was so bewildered that I could barely think to speak. Fred opened his mouth to contradict me when he saw that my face was ashen. He squeezed my hand in comfort. "It's okay, Casey. The parchment won't eat us...right?"

"R-right..." I stuttered, but I was too busy reading what it had written.

_This is your father, Casey. I suggest you read this alone...it is no business of others._


	3. Chapter 3

I had not heard from your father for years...not since I escaped to America when I was 7. Now I was 16. His duty as a Death Eater was always a priority to his duty as my father, so this caused me to fret. I betrayed the Dark Lord, and now I was to be punished.

"Fred...do you...?" I couldn't finish. The word 'alone' was underlined. Was there any way that my father could see us right now? Or somehow know that Fred was beside me.

"Hey." Fred said, trying to distract me. "Let's go somewhere less crowded and take care of this, okay?" I nodded in agreement. I wanted to keep Fred with me...in fact, being alone was the least appetizing thing right then. He kept my hand in his as we walked into the corridor and up flights of stairs.

"Fred, this is from my father."

"Yeah, I saw that." Fred nodded. Both of the twins knew about my past...in fact, most people did because my father was notorious for being so powerful and dark. Fred suddenly stopped halfway up a flight of stairs and turned to me. He pulled me into a hug.

"How about we just get rid of the parchment? I hate to see you upset like this. It's not worth it." With my face in his chest, I breathed in...taking in the warmth and the scent of him. I wished I could stay there forever. When I didn't answer, Fred squeezed me. "What do you say, love?"

"I've got to answer." My voice was muffled.

"Are you sure?" Fred asked. I nodded and looked at him.

"The parchment won't eat us, right?" I almost smiled, trying to forget the fear. Fred laughed.

"Of course not, not with me here to defend us! No way a piece of lousy parchment will mess with a Weasley and his Casey."

Fred and I walked in silence to the Room of Requirement. Going in, I saw it was a dimly lit room with only one couch and a small table in front of it. It had several quills on the surface. We sat down, Fred never letting go of my hand. The parchment now read:

_Are you alone?_

I hesitated.

"Should I write something, Fred?" I looked to him. Fred nodded solemnly.

"It won't eat us." He muttered, but Fred, too, was even a little afraid of what the parchment had in store.

"What else can happen?" I brushed the fear off...but it was the magical world...anything could happen. I put the quill to the paper.

_Would you not know if I were or not?_

As soon as I wrote, a response appeared.

_I figure I can trust you. You aren't a stupid girl._

_What if I weren't alone? You wrote. What does it matter?_

_Quit asking questions._

And that was that. I looked at Fred and he looked at me. I had responded, and now it was too late to turn back.

_Sorry._ Was all I could get the quill to write before my hands started to shake violently.

_What you have done will not go without punishment. You will die, or you will fight for The Dark Lord. It is your choice, and I trust you to make the right decision_.

At this moment, I had never hated my father more. Tears spouted from my eyes and they turned into desperate sobs. Fred grabbed hold of my waist and pulled me closer to him, letting me sob into his chest. He rubbed my back and let the storms of my sobs die down.

"Love." Fred said when my sobs were diminished to isolated tears. "It's okay. Don't let this bother you."

"What do I do?" I asked tearfully.

"You go on doing what you always do, okay? You don't need any of this."

"I can't just deny the life I was born into." I frowned, looking up to Fred. I saw he was grimacing down at me because the both of us already knew that I was too powerful not to fight.

"Then you will fight if you have to…and what side you join will be your choice." Fred continued to rub up and down my back gently. "What do you say we forget about all of this?"

"I can't."

"Yes, you can. Just don't worry about it. I hate to see you so upset." Fred looked me in the eye. "You're safe here, Casey. Your father can't do anything more than send you letters. And even then, Dumbledore can fix that! In fact, we can tell him about this right now." He took my hand. "Do you want to?"

"Not yet." I attempted to smile. "If it happens again, we will. Right?"

"Of course." Fred helped me stand up and hugged me again. "Besides, that prat of a father will never hurt you while I'm around. I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe, okay?" My heart began to jump. Fred was never this serious, and the fact that he was being so sweet helped cheer me up.

"Thank you, Fred." I said as I pulled away from the hug. Fred kept my hand in his.

"Don't worry about it. This is what I'm here for."

"No…I'm serious. I cried on you and everything. I was a complete wimp."

"No, you weren't. You're the strongest person I know, Casey! You just needed a break to let go. I'll be here any time you need another break. You're my best friend." Fred grinned. "Besides Filch, of course." I laughed.

"You git."

We walked in silence back to the Portrait hole. Suddenly Fred pulled out his wand.

"Hey. Watch." He told me, and then muttered something to his wand. Before I knew it, a daisy sprouted out of the tip of his wand. It was beautiful…a perfect little Shasta daisy with a golden center and soft white petals. Fred pulled it off of his wand.

"For you, love." He gently placed it in my hair.

"Fred Weasley," I grinned. "You never cease to impress me! You're amazing."

"Nah, I'm lousy." Fred disagreed. "See, I've been trying so hard to grow a flower with that spell that's as beautiful as you…but they never even come close." My heart fluttered and I couldn't think of what to say. Fred was playing every single one of my heartstrings, and in that moment I thought that maybe I was in love with Fred.

"Too corny?" He asked when I didn't answer.

"No!" I said immediately. "No, it was so sweet. Thank you so much, Fred. Really, you're the greatest friend."

As we reached the portrait hole, Fred pulled the parchment my father sent me out of his pocket.

"What shall we do with this?" We exchanged a glance and both gave mischievous smiles. We were both thinking the same thing.

"Okay, light it on fire on the count of three, all right, George?" Fred said.

"Well, all right…but I still don't understand why the parchment is here." George said. George had his wand out and was indicating to the now balled-up piece of parchment my father sent me. It had a torpedo-like firework jutting out of it that was resting on the banister of the stairs…pointed down to Filch who was two stories down cleaning an enormous pile of vomit a First-year left.

"Well, George, if you light the parchment on fire, the fire has more time to heat up, and makes the firework brighter!" I explained. George cocked an eyebrow but nodded anyway. Once he turned away, Fred whispered.

"Smooth."

"All right, places." George said. He remained standing with a flame at the end of his wand…inches away from the parchment. Fred and I hid behind a nearby suit of armor.

"One." I said.

"Two…" George moved his wand a little closer.

"Three!" Fred's voice was half yell, half whisper. George threw the flame into the parchment and then ducked. The three of us watched from our hiding places as the firework blasted toward Filch. Filch noticed when the firework was feet away, and he lost his balance and fell face-first into the pile of vomit. The firework, however, turned upward just in time and headed toward the ceiling. Just as it was approaching the top, it exploded into the shape of a sparking daisy.

"Gee, Fred, girly enough for you?" George asked. Fred ignored him. He turned to me.

"Guess I'm going to have to keep trying…it still doesn't compare." At first, I didn't realize what he was talking about, but it hit me that he meant that the firework wasn't as beautiful as me. Fred winked at me and I grinned.

"Mm, nothing like First year vomit for dinner, eh, Filch?" George shouted. The three of us sprinted into the Gryffindor common room. The parchment was gone and forgotten.

However, my father and his Dark Lord would not be rid of so easily.

The days passed over Hogwarts faster than a Firebolt broomstick, it seemed, leaving me almost no interesting events. However, the arrival of the Durmstrangs and Beauxbatons and the failure of Fred and George to deceive the Goblet of Fire occurred. The days had blurred together, though because they were mostly made up of pranks and classes and sleep.

I rose before the sun did on the morning of Halloween. I stretched and consulted the cuckoo clock on the wall near my four-poster. It displayed that it was precisely 5:30 in the morning. I sat up and looked around the room. Angelina, Katie and Alicia were all still asleep. Yawning, I wondered what had woken me up. I didn't have to wait long to know why.

A sharp tapping sounded at the window. When I looked out, I saw the giant black hawk that had brought me the blank parchment from my father. I froze. Everyone else was asleep...including Fred. There was no one to protect me this time. But...I knew. I had to face this sometime. I let the hawk in.

The hawk climbed onto my arm and waited. A small piece of parchment was tied to its foot and I untied it and shooed the bird out quickly. The parchment had writing on it this time.

_Come down to the dungeons._

I recognized this writing as my sister, Kima's...not my father's. Relief clouded my mind slightly and I slipped on decent clothes. Kima wouldn't harm her older sister.

I arrived at the dungeons to find Kima breathing soundly outside of the Slytherin Common Room entrance.

"Kima?" I asked. "Did you send for me?" Kima looked up energetically and smiled.

"Yes!" She piped. "Would you like to come in?" She gestured to the Slytherin common room.

"No..." I said. "I'm tired, Kima, what is this about?" Kima gave me a look that scared me; her expression so closely resembled an expression our father would use when he was planning something, excited.

"Now, now, sister. Calm down! We've got all the time in the world. At least sit down." She motioned to the floor. I did so and raised an eyebrow, waiting.

"He's back." Kima whispered, smiling slyly.

"What?"

"He's back!" Kima rasped impatiently. "The Dark Lord."

"...how do you-" Fear rose in my chest.

"Father told me. I haven't seen him, yet...but..."

"You're going to SEE him?" I exclaimed. "Kima, what's wrong with you?"

"Me? What's wrong with you? You're not going to turn your back on Father, are you?"

"If Father is fighting for the Dark Lord..." I paused. "Then, yes. I am turning from him." As I said this, Kima's eyes filled with fury.

"What? Why-"

"Kima! Don't you remember how we had to run away from our father? He is dangerous, and he was killing us!"

"Father loves us!" Kima shouted indignantly. "He trained us to fight on the right side. The correct side. He wanted us to be safe."

"Voldemort's side is NOT safe, Kima. He kills people for fun." I argued.

"OH, that's crud you're saying! He kills those who deserve it!"

"Listen, Kima..." I took a deep breath. "I am not going to fight anyone. Especially not for father. He had no love for us, so what do I owe him? To him, we are only soldiers that are meant to die for the Dark Lord." Kima shook her head as I finished.

"We wouldn't die. Father trained us to be the most powerful-"

"Either way, I am not living for Voldemort. He is cruel." Kima and I stared at each other. The two of us had once been close friends when we were younger...both desperate to serve our father but fearful of our futures. The two of us had obviously now split and ascended to our own paths.

"Fine," Kima said curtly. "You will die, though; if not at the Dark Lord's hands, then at mine. Just wait and see."

"Kima...you don't have to do this! If you'll just-" My begging was interrupted by Kima's glaring eyes and sharp shout.

"Leave!"

And I did. I launched myself out of the dungeons with a feeling that none of it was real. I shook my head and grimaced. This was not a dream. Voldemort was back, and no matter what, I had to fight.

Instead of turning to go to the Gryffindor common room, I headed towards Dumbledore's office. I was not going to fight alone.


	4. Chapter 4

I reached the two gargoyles, and suddenly I realized that in my panic and determination, I didn't know the password into Dumbledore's office.

"Password?" One of the Gargoyles growled.

"Well, I-ah, Dumbledore...?" I piped. I knew this was wrong, but it's all my poor mind could think of.

"Incorrect." The other stated.

"Listen..." I said quietly. "I don't know it, but I-"

"No password, no entrance."

"But, it's kind of urgent! I have to speak to Dumbledore."

"No password, no entrance." They both roared at the same time.

"Oh, this is useless." I muttered, wishing desperately that the twins were with me to help. Suddenly, a thought occurred to me: Apparition. No one could Apparate within the ground of Hogwarts...however, there were a lot of things that I could do that no one was supposed to be able to do. So, what if I could Apparate into the office? I thought that it was worth a try. I closed my eyes and focused on the office. When nothing harder, I held my breath and thought of nothing else but the office. Then, there I was, in front of the doors that led into the office. I had done it. I smiled for a second, but then hastily knocked on the door. No one answered, so I brought my fist up to knock again. Just then, the door open and Dumbledore appeared wearing his night robes.

"Good morning, Miss Berry." He said placidly.

"Professor, I'm sorry, I-" I stuttered, but Dumbledore hushed me.

"No, no, Casey, you've only woken me up a little before my usual waking time." He gestured out the window. A small ring of the sun was showing over the dark horizon.

"Sit down," Dumbledore said as he did the same.

"Now, what is this about?" He smiled slightly at me. Dumbledore knew me and had had always made sure to keep contact with me while I were at Hogwarts.

"Well...Professor...I...He's back. Voldemort is back." You stuttered. Dumbledore showed no surprise...and unlike what I expected, looked more curious than doubtful.

"How do you know this?" He implored.

"Well, my father told me. He...well, he got in contact with me and told me that if I didn't fight for him, I would be killed. But...I thought he was just trying to scare me..." I shook my head, kicking myself for not telling Dumbledore sooner. "And, then, my sister got me to come down to the Dungeons and she told me he was back. Just this morning."

"Well, Casey, I do believe they are right."

"They...they what?" I was incredulous.

"I believe that he has been back for some time now. I don't think he's powerful, yet, but it seems that his Death Eaters are going back to him...so he must be back and approaching power." Dumbledore explained. I stared at him.

"So...ah...what do we do?"

"You, Casey, shall go about your business. I will keep watch on your sister, Kima. If you receive any more contact from your father...I would like you to come to me immediately. This is no concern of yours, and I would like to simply enjoy your time at Hogwarts."

I was fond of Dumbledore...but I couldn't believe that he only wanted me to stay put. I nodded nervously and left after saying thank you and good bye. I slowly walked back to the Gryffindor common room.

Fred's P.O.V.

I walked down the stairs into the Common room as I joked with George.

"Shall we wait for Casey?" George asked.

"Well, of course!" The two of us never went to breakfast without Casey. "Isn't she already down there? We woke up late this morning." George looked around and replied,

"Well, it doesn't look like it."

"Angelina!" I called her over. She looked over from her conversation with Katie.

"What?"

"Where's Casey?" George asked. Angelina's face took on a concerned expression.

"I figured she was with you two. She was gone when I woke up this morning." Angelina said. George and I exchanged a look of concern.

"Maybe we should go down to breakfast and see if she's there?" George suggested. I shook my head.

"She wouldn't go without telling us, do you think? She likes to stick to routine. Do you suppose something's happened?"

"I don't know..." George muttered. "I'll go down to look, and you stay here in case she comes back, okay?"

"Okay." I nodded. George cocked an eyebrow.

"Relax, Fred. She's probably trying to scare us. Don't let her win!" George smiled and winked, and I attempted to smile back...but I was worried. I was really fond of Casey, to the point that I planned on asking her to go with me. I sat down as George left and tried not to worry.

Casey's P.O.V.

I climbed through the portrait hole and shivered. I saw Fred sitting on the couch looking absent-minded.

"Fred?"

Fred jumped.

"Casey! Where have you been?" Fred stood up and steadied me to a seat on the couch. I was still in shock and very tired.

I explained everything that happened. Fred nodded grimaced.

"And Dumbledore thinks you should just...ignore it?"

"I guess." I replied. "I don't really know what else I CAN do, though."

"That's true." Fred agreed. "But, it seems a little weird that you should just...shut up about it. Pretend nothing happened."

"Well, I'm safe here, right?" I asked.

"Of course." Fred reassured and helped you stand up. The two of us had met up with George and explained what had happened to me, too, but there was never a solution discovered. I was just going to have to follow Dumbledore's advice and ignore it.

That night at dinner, the Goblet sat on a Pedestal in the Great Hall and the entire school was babbling in excitement and anticipation of who would be chosen.

"Imagine if you were in it, Casey!" Lee shouted.

"You'd be amazing! Blow away all the competition!"

"Lee, I won't be 17 until July!"

"So what? You're still better than everyone else here!" Lee countered. Fred and George nodded in agreement.

"Probably better than anyone in the Wizarding world!" Fred said, looking straight at me. I denied the urge to blush.

"Guys, it'd be dumb anyway!" The three guys were about to argue when Dumbledore stepped up to the Podium and announced that the Goblet would soon be choosing.

Soon enough, the Goblet spit out a piece of parchment. Dumbledore read it.

"The Beauxbaton Competitor is...FLEUR DELACOUR!" Dumbledore bellowed. The Hall was enveloped by high pitched screams, cheers and applause. I applauded politely as I searched for who Fleur Delacour was. A gorgeous blonde girl waltzed up to Dumbledore and George whistled softly and Lee joined him in ogling her. I nervously glanced at Fred to find that he was looking at me.

"Don't worry," Fred whispered to me underneath Lee and George's chatter. "You're much better." Fred winked at me and I grinned. My cheeks bloomed red and I attempted to hide my blushing as I turned to Dumbledore.

"The Durmstrang competitor is..." Dumbledore shouted as the Hall was quieting. "VIKTOR KRUM!" The entire Hall was swallowed by cheering.

"It only figures that the famous Quidditch player would get it..." Fred leaned over to me and stated. I nodded in agreement, but I was too focused on who the Hogwarts competitor would be. I racked my brains for anyone I knew who had been able to enter. Angelina had I remembered. Cedric Diggory...I thought but could not come up with anyone else. However, it did not matter, for Dumbledore had caught the last piece of parchment and read it,

"And the Hogwarts competitor is..." The entire Hall seemed to tense up. "CEDRIC DIGGORY!"

"NO!" Fred and George both yelled, but it went unheard. The Hall seemed to be made of nothing but noise at that time because every Hogwarts students aside from the Gryffindor Quidditch team seemed thrilled to have him representing them.

"That prat?" Fred asked incredulously.

"Oh, come on, guys..." I said. "He's not that bad." Fred and George both froze with disbelieving looks on their faces. In my defense, I spoke again. "I mean, what if Flint got it?"

"True." Fred nodded. But Lee and George weren't ready to give it a rest.

"Looks like Casey's got a boyfriend." Lee teased, nudging me.

"Oooooh, Ceeeedric." George mimicked in a high pitched voice.

"Are you MAD?" I shouted. "He's a prat, I agree, but it could be-"

"Casey and Cedric sittin' in a tree..." George began to sing, causing attention from other Gryffindors to me.

"Stop it!" I attempted to stop them, but Lee and George both kept chiming,

"K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Shut up!" Both Lee and George froze when Fred shouted this. Fred's face was red and dangerously serious...angry, in fact.

"Are you okay, mate?" George asked.

"I'm fine." Fred snapped, looking determinedly at his food. "You just need to leave her alone."

"Oh...okay, then." George and Lee exchanged awkward looks.

"Well...I'm going to go and comfort Angelina..." Lee said.

"Me too!" George followed Lee and looked slightly relieved to leave Fred to cool off.

"Fred...? I'm sorry." I apologized. Fred looked up at me.

"It's fine." He said, softly. "I just didn't want those guys picking on you like that."

"What they were saying wasn't true. I've barely ever talked to Cedric."

"I know, that's why they needed to stop. They're annoying as hell sometimes." Fred smiled at you. "Besides...pairing someone like you to that prat? It's unrealistic, I'll tell you that." Fred smiled at me and I smiled back. There was a moment when our blue eyes both locked together and seemed stuck. Warmth flooded into me and I forced myself to look away.

"Come on," Fred stood up. "Let's head back up to the common room."

"Hold on." I said, looking over to my sister Amber at the Hufflepuff table. I realized I needed to tell my other sisters about what had happened with Kima the night before. "I'll be right up! Save me a seat!" I approached Amber, but before I could get there, I stepped on something gloopy. When I looked down, I realized it was a slug. As I gasped, someone ran straight into me and knocking me to the ground.

"Oh, excuse me! I'm so sorry." A kind voice uttered as the person it belonged to helped me up. I was about to thank him until I saw who it was...it was Cedric Diggory.

"I'm sorry." He repeated. "I really should've watched where I was going. You're okay, are you?" Frozen almost, I took all the strength I had to nod.

"Oh, yes..." I cleared my throat. "Of course. Sorry. I wasn't watching either!"

"You're Casey, right?" Cedric asked me with a sweet smile on his face. He was looking straight into my eyes. I looked at his shoulder to avoid eye contact.

"Yes, I am. And you're Cedric. Congrats." I said curtly.

"Thanks." Cedric said and he was followed by silence. "Well, sorry again. I'll see you around?"

"Oh, yes." I said. "Bye now." I rushed away from him. I searched over my shoulder and saw George and Lee both grinning at me and mouthing their song. Fred was nowhere in sight, and I hoped he hadn't seen me.

I started towards the Common room as many others were, but before I could leave the Great Hall, someone shouted and pointed. I looked up to Dumbledore, but it was not him that was drawing people's attention; it was The Goblet. It was spitting out another piece of parchment. Fred was still nowhere in sight (He had obviously made it up to the Common Room.) but I found George and Lee back at the Gryffindor table.

"What is going...?" I stopped short. Dumbledore read the paper to himself and looked absolutely bewildered.

"This isn't supposed to be happening, is it?" Lee asked.

"Of course it is, you dolt! That's why it's called the TRI-wizard tournament because there's NOT three competitors. Use your brain, Lee! Of course it's not supposed to be happening! Look at Dumbledore's face!" George said. Dumbledore looked up from the parchment.

"Harry Potter...?" Dumbledore said, just loud enough to be heard. "HARRY POTTER?"


End file.
